I’ve just received an email from my employer saying I go on half pay in May/June time roughly but they have mentioned that I will qualify for Employment Support Allowance. I’ve looked on the internet but can’t find anything to say how its calculated and what payments are given.
I was made redundant end of Dec, I have since been getting ESA. For the first thirteen weeks I got £128 every fortnightly, I now get £165 every fortnightly - not much but better than nothing.
I did my form online and then a few days later they rang me for a telephone interview, few weeks later another thick form arrived for me to fill! My money was back dated though.
They do take savings into account, has to be under a certain amount for you to qualify. This will be one of the questions they ask when they ring you for a telephone interview.
There are 2 types of ESA that you can apply for, one is means tested and one is not. The one that isn’t pays out if you have paid in enough NI contributions.
Thanks very much for your info. I’ve worked full time since I was 18 and thats 23 years :-(( so hopefully I should be okay with the n.i. contributions.
Thanks also for the info.
Vicky’s company have just finished paying her and SSP has also stopped so I’ll be making a call this afternoon to get her ESA application underway.